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Book Arts & Special Collections and San Francisco History Center |
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Panel: Shaping Legacy Monument Case Studies
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Hear from the Community Engagement Consultants that guided community engagement and artists’ activations for five selected monument case studies from the Civic Art Collection. Each consultant collaborated with a community historian to guide three community story circles and two artists to propose creative interventions and public programming over the course of a year. Their work aligns with the Shaping Legacy Audit Report recommendation that the San Francisco Arts Commission create a participatory, community-based planning process for monuments and memorials with long histories of adverse public reaction.
Wednesday, August 5th, 2026: 6:00pm Koret Auditorium - Lower Level
Main Library 100 Larkin Street allison.wyckoff@sfpl.org |
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Film: Hamburger Eyes Video Fest
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Kick off the evening with a screening of Hamburger Eyes, a documentary by Hat & Beard Films, followed by short videos from Ray Potes and other prominent contributors to the zine.
NR, 30 mins., 2019. Closed captions (CC) in English.
Hamburger Eyes is a black-and-white photography magazine founded in 2001 by Ray Potes in collaboration with his brother, David, and their friend, Stefan Simikich. Over the past 25 years, Hamburger Eyes has blazed a trail in documentary photo publishing and created a style that is simultaneously raw and profound. With distinct photos that capture vignettes of everyday life, Hamburger Eyes encompasses the pendulum swing of human emotion, showcasing moments ranging from urban distress to childlike wonder.
Ray Potes began shooting photos and making zines at age 14 in San Diego. He has been doing the same ever since. Now based in San Francisco, he runs and operates Hamburger Eyes, a magazine dedicated to black and white photography.
Thursday, August 6th, 2026: 6:00pm
Jewett Gallery - Lower Level Main Library
100 Larkin Street exhibitionsteam@sfpl.org |
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Genealogy and Family History Symposium
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The Genealogy and Family History Symposium 2026 is a two-day conference presented by the San Francisco Public Library (SFPL) and the California Genealogical Society (CGS), featuring speakers from SFPL, CGS, SFgenealogy, the Oakland FamilySearch Center and others covering a diverse range of topics. Learn about physical and electronic resources available at the library that can aid your research, as well as how to search for specific ancestors like African American, Portuguese, Chinese, Filipino American, Russian American and more.
The symposium takes place in the lower level of the Main Library with presentations in the Koret Auditorium and Latino/Hispanic Room B, discussion groups in Latino/Hispanic Room A and organizations tabling in the Koret Lobby.
Wednesday and Thursday, August 12th-13th, 2026: All day
Koret Auditorium - Lower Level Main Library
100 Larkin Street sfplcpp@sfpl.org |
| Symposium Schedule of Programs
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Film: Generations - California @ 250: Bayview Hunters Point
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In Bayview Hunters Point – San Francisco, an episode of NorCal Public Media’s six-part documentary series Generations: California @ 250, three generations reflect on the neighborhood’s past, present, and future. One of the featured interviews was filmed in our Reading Room, and the documentary also highlights the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency Records—one of the most frequently requested and heavily used collections we steward.
NR, 27 mins., 2026. Closed captions (CC) in English.
Online film screening expires on Friday, August 21st, 2026
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Last Call for Summer Stride
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Your favorite summer reading program ends on August 31. Be sure to log your last few hours—or finish five activities on the 2026 Adult Challenge Card—and come in to get your adorable tote bag finishing prize! You can also keep striding to 40 hours to get that snazzy bandana… while supplies last.
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Current and Upcoming Exhibits |
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This Must Be the Place:
Photography in Print Media May 15, 2026 - August 27, 2026
Book Arts & Special Collections exhibit space – 6th Floor & San Francisco History Center Exhibit Space - 6th Floor
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Photograph by Ingeborg Gerdes, San Francisco Camera: Photographs from The San Francisco Art Institute, No. 2 (1969).
In the 1960s and 1970s, changes in printing technology reduced production costs and made photographic reproduction more accessible to small publishers. As a result, photographs circulated with increasing frequency through little magazines, underground newspapers and independently produced journals.
Across the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond, locally produced publications incorporated photography into emerging print networks. The underground press placed photographs alongside unfolding political and cultural events, while other titles positioned photography within broader literary and intellectual contexts. Tabloid-format pages, newsprint production and independent distribution shaped how photographs were seen and handled.
Explore an array of photographs ranging from artistic to journalistic in this exhibition sourced from our Book Arts and Special Collections and the San Francisco History Center.
This exhibit is a satellite display that connects to the exhibition The Continuing Story of Life on Earth: 25 Years of Hamburger Eyes, on view in the Jewett Gallery on the Lower Level from April 23–Sept. 24, 2026. |
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The Unbuilding Archive:
Liberated Futures for the Site of Compton's Cafeteria Riot June 4, 2026 - October 22, 2026
James C. Hormel LGBTQIA Center - 3rd Floor |
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Image: Ach Kab, The Unbuilding Archive, 2026, digital collage. Source images: Jennifer Cheek (1993); A.D. Bache (1853); Rincon Hill Panorama (c. 1851/1910), OpenSFHistory.
The Unbuilding Archive marks the 60th anniversary of the 1966 Compton’s Cafeteria riot, the first well-documented trans and queer uprising against police violence in the country, at the crossroads of Turk and Taylor Streets in San Francisco’s Tenderloin neighborhood. Today, the building at 101-121 Taylor Street is occupied by GEO Group, the largest private prison corporation in the country and main contractor with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to operate detention centers, continuing an occupation of carceral power at a site of historic resistance.
In response, the TurkxTaylor Initiative and the broader Compton’s x Coalition have emerged to liberate the site and imagine an alternative future that honors its legacy of resistance. We approach the building as a microcosm where interconnected structures of oppression—colonialism, capitalism, white supremacy, patriarchy and ableism—can be dismantled at a local scale to uncover possibilities for collective liberation.
This exhibition centers trans liberation while recognizing that all systems of domination are intertwined. We begin with the building’s current carceral occupation, tracing its transformation back to its construction in 1908, and grounding our imagination in the land itself by honoring the Ramaytush Ohlone stewardship. From that space, we share speculative works developed through community workshops, drawing from Susan Stryker’s archival materials, and offering expansive visions for transforming Compton’s into a space where liberated futures can be imagined and built together. |
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Rooted in San Francisco:
10 Years of the Legacy Business Program
May 30, 2026 - August 21, 2026
Art, Music & Recreation Center Exhibit Space - 4th Floor |
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Celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2026, the Legacy Business Program is the first initiative of its kind in the nation, inspiring nearly three dozen cities to create similar programs. Established in San Francisco, it honors and supports for-profit and nonprofit businesses that have operated in the city for 30 years or more. Today, the program includes over 500 Legacy Businesses.
This exhibition brings together archival photographs, artwork, memorabilia and other materials from a selection of these businesses, offering a glimpse into their histories and contributions to San Francisco’s neighborhoods and rich cultural identity.
From family-run storefronts to long-standing neighborhood institutions, Legacy Businesses reflect the stories, resilience and evolution of the communities they serve. Together, they highlight the vital role small businesses play in shaping the city’s economic and cultural landscape. |
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More Exhibits Where You'll Find SF History Center Archives
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Destination: San Francisco
May 9, 2026 - January 10, 2027 SFO International Terminal
Aviation Museum & Library, Departures Level 3 - Pre-Security |
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SFO Museum has partnered with SFPL's San Francisco History Center and local historian and former San Francisco Chronicle urban design critic John King on a new exhibition, Destination: San Francisco. The exhibition offers a vibrant look at how our city built its identity as a world‑class travel destination—tracing decades of promotional efforts from iconic brochures and bold graphic design to imaginative marketing campaigns. The San Francisco History Center's San Francisco Travel Association Records collection provided rich context for this story .
This exhibition is a wonderful opportunity to see how SFPL’s archival collections are interpreted and brought to life in a museum setting. If you can, take time to visit SFO and explore the city’s travel history.
Pre‑security access; no ticket required. Read the press release for more information. |
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Assessor-Recorder Property Photos Now Digitized |
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New to the Collection
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BLAG, no. 9 (Summer 2026)
The newest periodical to Book Arts & Special Collections BLAG bills itself as “adventures in sign painting,” and all we can say is yes! This British crew covers everything from ghost signs (our favorite) to hand painted signs around the world, vintage signs, sign painting couples, picture perfect book reviews, and a trip to San Francisco with the Letterform Archive, where the calligraphy of Arthur Baker is featured in this month’s issue.
To top it off, you can always visit the Harrison Collection of Calligraphy & Lettering for more Arthur Baker!
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Coming Soon to the Collection
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Book the Trip: A Tour of Folk Lettering Worldwide by Alastair M. Johnston (Poltroon Press, 2026)
Shush! New to Book Arts & Special Collections but not yet cataloged: we couldn’t resist sharing this amazing trip around the world of folk lettering. We’ll make sure it’s available as soon as possible.
“Alastair Johnston has been documenting signs and lettering from all over the world, but it is more than just lettering, it is also a cultural, social and historical document. Signs and lettering are all around informing us, cajoling us, reminding us, pointing us in the right direction in a myriad of styles. They are a very important part of our visual
landscape that we often hardly see. What is truly fascinating about this book is its cultural diversity, from Indian lorries to Haitian buses, present day Irish sign painting to the English industrial heritage and fairground art.’ –David Quay, type designer, type tourist
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San Francisco History Center, Book Arts & Special Collections
Main Library, 6th Floor 100 Larkin San Francisco, CA 94102 |
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